LaPorte man dies in fall from moving SUV

LaPorte man had climbed out passenger-side window.

LaPorte man had climbed out passenger-side window.

June 06, 2007|STAN MADDUX Tribune Correspondent

A LaPorte man has died from injuries received in a fall from a moving sport utility vehicle. Investigators say they may never know for sure why Joseph Johnson climbed out the passenger-side window, but an attempt at "car surfing" is among the many possibilities that were raised. "I know that's what we have talked about here, but that's nothing official," LaPorte County Police spokesman Maj. Gary Broling said. "I don't think we'll ever know what was in his head," Broling said. It was about 12:30 a.m. Thursday when officers responded to South Town Boulevard and County Road 700 East near Fish Lake. Johnson was lying on the side of the road with a severe head injury. The other occupants of the SUV, Jason Brennan and Chris Grillo, told police they picked up Johnson from the Last Round Up, a bar and grill in Stillwell, and were heading to a residence in nearby Fish Lake. Both men told police they believed Johnson was kidding when he was trying to climb out the window. They even told him several times to "stop messing around" before he fell out, according to police. He was flown to Memorial Hospital in South Bend, where he died Monday afternoon. According to police, the case was given to the LaPorte County Prosecutor's Office to decide whether to pursue criminal charges. Police said Brennan, the driver, had a blood-alcohol level of 0.07 percent, which is below Indiana's 0.08 percent legal limit. According to his obituary, Johnson was a welder at Teledyne Casting Services in LaPorte. He leaves three children. Services are scheduled for 11 a.m. Friday at Haverstock Funeral Home in LaPorte.